Nozzle reactors have long been used to inject differing types of materials into a reactor chamber in the nozzle reactor for the purpose of seeking to cause the materials to interact within the reactor chamber and achieve alteration of the mechanical or chemical composition of one or more of the materials.
One example of a nozzle reactor disclosure is Canadian Patent Application No. 2,224,615 (the '615 Publication). This reference states that its disclosed nozzle reactor is designed to receive a bitumen/steam flow mixture into a single central nozzle reactor passage extending along the axial length of the nozzle reactor. The reference states that the nozzle forms a flow passageway of circular diametric cross-section having the following sections in sequence from the bitumen/steam flow mixture inlet: a first contraction section of reducing diameter for accelerating the flow and reducing the size of bitumen droplets; a diffuser section of expanding diameter to decelerate the flow and induce a shock wave; a second contraction section to accelerate the mixture more than the first contraction section; and an orifice outlet for producing an output jet or spray. The '615 Publication further states that the disclosed nozzle reactor reduces bitumen droplet size from about 12,000 μm to about 300 μm.
Among other things, the nozzle reactor of the '615 Publication receives a pre-mixed bitumen/steam liquid medium. As a result, the nozzle reactor technique of the '615 Publication requires implementation of one or more substantial pre-mixing steps in order to generate and deliver the desired bitumen/steam liquid medium to the central nozzle reactor passage. In addition, the pre-mixed liquid medium (including bitumen in the mixture) inherently yields limited velocities of the medium through the nozzle reactor.
Another example of a nozzle reactor is shown in FIG. 3 of the enclosed U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0065589 (the '589 Publication). (See FIG. 4 of the present application). The nozzle reactor discussed in the '589 Publication has two steam injectors disposed: (i) laterally separated from opposing sides of a central, axially extending vapor expansion feed stock injector, (ii) at an acute angle to the axis of the central vapor expansion feed stock injector. The steam injectors are thus disposed for ejection from the steam injectors in the direction of travel of material feed stock injected by the feed stock injector. Each of the three injectors has a discharge end feeding into a central reactor ring or tube extending coaxially from the central feed stock injector. As shown in the '589 Publication, the central feed stock injector appears as if it may have a divergent-to-convergent axial cross-section with a nearly plugged convergent end; but as shown in the enclosed related Canadian Patent Application No. 2,346,181 (the '181 Publication), the central feed stock injector has a straight-through bore. (See FIG. 5 of the present application).
As the '589 Publication explains, superheated steam is injected through the two laterally opposed steam injectors into the interior of reactor tube in order to impact a pre-heated, centrally-located feed stream of certain types of heavy hydrocarbon simultaneously injected through the vapor expansion feed stock injector into the interior of the reactor tube. (See, e.g., '589 Publication, paragraph 18.) The '589 Publication states that the object of '589 nozzle reactor is to crack the feed stream into lighter hydrocarbons through the impact of the steam feeds with the heavy hydrocarbon feed within the reactor tube. (See, e.g., id., paragraphs 29-31.) According to the '589 Publication, the types of heavy hydrocarbons processed with the '589 nozzle reactor are crude oil, atmospheric residue, and heavy distillates. (Id., paragraph 32.) With the nozzle reactors of either the '589 Publication and the '181 Publication, a central oil feed stock jet intersects the steam jets at some distance from the ejection of these jets from their respective injectors.
The applicants have discovered that, among other things, nozzle reactors of the type shown in the '589 Publication, the '181 Publication and associated methods of use: (i) are inefficient; (ii) typically and perhaps always provide only sonic or subsonic velocity of a feed stock into the associated reactor tube; and (iii) yield excessive un-cracked or insufficiently cracked heavy hydrocarbons, requiring recycling or other disposition of the resulting un-cracked heavies. These same nozzle reactors also typically yield excessive coke formation and scaling of the nozzle reactor walls, reducing the efficiency of the nozzle reactor and requiring substantial effort to remove the scale formation within the nozzle reactor.